Abstract
This study tried to examine how linguistic sexism manifests through the lexicons of Afan Oromo, Amharic and Gamo in the light of the social and cultural lives of the speakers. The data for this study were collected from native speakers through elicitation. These data were analyzed based on Critical Discourse Analysis approach. As the study showed, among the three languages, semantically asymmetric terms, metaphors of terms that denote human beings, use of man/he as generic, and administration titles exhibit sexism. This has resulted from the male dominance in the socio-cultural lives of the societies. The linguistic sexism observed in this study are now conventions of the languages. Researches show that language conventions shape the way speakers think. Hence, it is believed that these sorts of linguistic sexism among the languages maintain the socio-culturally created gender bias ideologies of the societies. This scenario would be a challenge for the current gender mainstreaming endeavors of Ethiopia. Therefore, a thorough study should be carried out on these languages and the rest of the country’s languages to assist in combating the broader gender inequality scenario in Ethiopia. Key words: Linguistic sexism, Afan Oromo, Amharic, Gamo, Male dominance.
Highlights
Ethiopian people are categorized under two ethnolinguistic families called Afro-asiatic and Nilo-saharan
Among the languages of Ethiopian linguistic area, this study has focused on the languages of the Oromo, the Amhara, and the Gamo
The main purpose of the study was to analyze the linguistic sexism reflected in lexicons of Afan Oromo, Amharic, and Gamo
Summary
Ethiopian people are categorized under two ethnolinguistic families called Afro-asiatic and Nilo-saharan These families comprise of over 70 different ethno-lingual communities with over 200 dialects (Central Statistics Agency, 2007). Assimilations of populations and adoptions of languages in Ethiopia have begun with the Cushitic and the Semitic in the central highlands of Ethiopia between the 12 and 13th centuries. It was accelerated during the Oromo expansions in the 16th century and assimilation policies of the Ethiopian Emperors between the 16 and the 19th centuries (Lubo, 2012 citing Galperin, 1981). Cultural, linguistic, and religious interactions among its ethnic groups, Ethiopia is said to have developed in to a linguistic area (cf, Tosco, 2000)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
